Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
2138361
TWO-WAY MAILER ENVELOPE
Field of the Invention
This application pertains to a "two-way" mailer
envelope which may be reused by the addressee to mail
material to another party.
Background of the Invention
~Two-way" mailer envelopes exist in various
forms. Often, the addressee must carefully follow a
prescribed sequence of steps in order to open the envelope
without damaging it to such an extent that it cannot be
reused to mail material to another party. Typically, two-
way mailer envelopes must be reassembled by the addressee
performing a sequence of steps to reconfigure the envelope
for reuse after it has been opened. These factors tend to
discourage reuse of two-way mailer envelopes. Such reuse
is desirable not only from an environmental conservation
standpoint, but also because, by utilizing a two-way mailer
envelope which the addressee can easily reuse, the party
contacting the addressee may ensure more rapid receipt of
return correspondence. This can be particularly important
if the return correspondence is in the form of payment of
a bill enclosed in the two-way mailer envelope originally
delivered to the addressee.
The present invention provides an easy-to-use
two-way mailer envelope which addresses the foregoing
concerns.
Summary of the Invention
In accordance with the preferred embodiment, the
invention provides an envelope having front and rear faces
which are joined to form a pocket defined by an opening
between respective upper edges of the front and rear faces.
A flap is joined to the upper edge of the front face and
may be folded to overlap a portion of the rear face. A
line of weakness extends across the flap. Adhesive may be
pre-applied to the envelope or may be applied by automatic
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mailing machinery. The adhesive is applied to initially
seal the envelope by fixing the flap to the rear face and
- to provide for later re-sealing of the envelope for re-
mailing thereof. The addressee opens the envelope by
tearing the flap along the line of weakness. The opened
envelope can then be reused, with a portion of the adhesive
being used to again fix the flap to the rear face.
In some embodiments, a non-adhesive gap may
overlie the line of weakness and separate the adhesive
region into first and second adhesive zones, although this
is not essential. This assists in preventing migration of
an adhesive-wetting agent, such as water, between the two
adhesive zones.
Advantageously, a means is provided to assist in
tearing the flap along the line of weakness. For example,
at least one notch may be provided in the flap at one end
of the line of weakness; or, notches may be provided in the
flap at both ends of the line of weakness. Alternatively,
a tear strip may be embedded in the flap to extend along
the line of weakness. As a further alternative, a second
line of weakness extending across the adhesive region may
be provided.
In some embodiments a removable label may be
adhered to the envelope's rear face. The label is of a
size and is positioned to receive return address bar code
indicia applied by mail handling apparatus.
In some embodiments an address aperture may be
provided in the envelop's front face, with a transparent,
water-soluble membrane such as poly-vinyl-alcohol fixed to
an inner portion of the front face and overlying the
aperture.
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Brief Description of the Drawings
Figure lA illustrates a basic embodiment of the
invention. Figure lB shows the Figure lA envelope after it
is closed for delivery to an addressee. Figure lC shows
S the Figure lB envelope after it has been opened by the
addressee. Figure lD shows the Figure lC envelope after it
has been resealed for reuse by the addressee. Figures lA
through lD are all rear elevation views of the envelope.
Figure 2 iS a front elevation view of the Figure
lA envelope, additionally showing an address aperture
covered by a transparent membrane and showing two areas for
affixation of postage.
Figure 3 is an oblique rear pictorial view of the
Figure lB envelope in the process of being opened.
Figures 4A and 4B are rear elevation views of an
alternative embodiment of the invention.
Figures 5A and 5B are rear elevation views of
another alternative embodiment of the invention.
Figures 6A and 6B are respectively rear elevation
25 and rear oblique pictorial illustrations of another alter-
native embodiment of the invention.
Figures 7A and 7B are rear elevation views of a
further embodiment of the invention incorporating a tear
30 strip and a removable label for receiving bar code informa-
tion.
Figure 8 is a rear elevation view of an embodi-
ment of the invention without pre-applied adhesive.
Figure 9 is a rear elevation view of an embodi-
ment of the invention having an end opening flap.
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Figure 10 is a front elevation view of an envel-
- ope showing a removable address label applied over a pre-
printed return address.
Figure 11 is a rear elevation view of an embodi-
ment of the invention having an adhesive region on its rear
face.
Figure 12 is a rear elevation view of an embodi-
ment of the invention having one adhesive region on its
flap and another on its rear face.
Figure 13 is a front elevation view of an envel-
ope having an integral, removable flap bearing a pre-
printed return address inserted behind a first enclosure
bearing an outgoing address.
Figure 14 is a rear elevation view of the Figure
13 envelope, showing the flap extracted from the envelope.
Figure 15 is a front elevation view of the Figure
13 envelope, showing the flap re-inserted into the envel-
ope in front of a second enclosure.
Figure 16 is a cross-sectional side view taken
with respect to line 16-16 of Figure 13.
Figure 17 is a cross-sectional side view taken
with respect to line 17-17 of Figure 15.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Figure lA depicts a basic embodiment of the
invention comprising envelope 10 having a front face 12 and
a rear face 14. Front and rear faces 12, 14 are joined
along their bottom and side edges to create a pocket
defined by an opening which extends between the respective
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- upper edges of front and rear faces 12, 14. A flap 16 is
joined to front face 12 along fold 18 such that flap 16 may
- be folded to overlap a portion of rear face 14. An adhes-
ive region 20 is provided on the inner face of flap 16,
with line of weakness 22 extending through adhesive region
20.
In operation, the original user of envelope 10
employs only that portion of adhesive region 20 lying above
line of weakness 22 (as viewed in Figure lA) to attach flap
16 to rear face 14 in order to seal the envelope into the
form shown in Figure lB for delivery to the addressee. As
best seen in Figure 3, the addressee opens envelope 10 by
tearing along line of weakness 22. This leaves a first
portion 16A of flap 16 adhered to rear face 14 while
freeing an adhesive-bearing portion 16B of flap 16 as best
seen in Figure lC. After removing the mailed material from
envelope 10 the addressee may reuse the envelope by insert-
ing mailing material thereinto and reseal the envelope by
means of the adhesive remaining on flap portion 16B in
order to attach flap portion 16B to rear face 14 to yield
the resealed configuration seen in Figure lD.
Automatic mailing machinery is commonly employed
to seal envelopes. Such machinery can be adjusted to
control the application of an adhesive wetting agent (such
as water) to a desired part of adhesive portion 20.
However, it may in some cases be desirable to prevent
possible migration of adhesive wetting agent across line of
weakness 22 in order to prevent inadvertent affixation of
both of flap portions 16A and 16B to rear face 14 when
envelope 10 is first used. This can be achieved by provid-
ing a non-adhesive gap 24 (Figure 7A) to overlie line of
weakness 22 and separate adhesive region 20 into first and
second adhesive zones 20A and 20B.
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Figures 4A and 4B illustrate an embodiment of the
invention in which flap 16 has a tab portion 16C of reduced
- width compared to flap 16 and envelope 10. This in turn
reduces the length of line of weakness 22. Consequently,
the addressee need only maintain the tearing operation over
a reduced interval, thus reducing the possibility of uneven
tearing which could damage flap 16 and prevent reuse of the
envelope.
10Figures 5A and 5B illustrate an embodiment
somewhat similar to that of Figures 4A-4B, but employing a
somewhat different configuration of flap 16.
Although most people should have little diffi-
culty opening the envelope by tearing along line of weak-
ness 22 it may in some cases be desirable to provide some
assistance in "starting" the tearing operation. This can
be achieved in various ways. For example, at least one
notch 26 (Figures 4A-4B, 5A-5B) may be provided in the
envelope closure flap at one end of the line of weakness.
Notch 26 serves as an insertion point for a finger, letter
opener, pen or other device and focuses the tearing oper-
ation on the line of weakness to minimize potential damage
to the closure flap which might prevent reuse of envelope
10.
As another alternative, a tear strip 28 (Figure
7A) can be embedded in flap 16 to extend along line of
weakness 22. A free end 30 of tear strip 28 may be grasped
by the user and pulled to tear cleanly along line of
weakness 22, thus minimizing potential damage to flap 16
and preserving the envelope for reuse as aforesaid.
Figures 6A and 6B illustrate yet another alterna-
tive in which first and second lines of weakness 22A, 22Bextend across adhesive region 20. Flap 16 may be
configured as shown to define notches 32, 34 at the opposed
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ends of each of lines of weakness 22A, 22B and defining tab
portions 36 therebetween. The addressee grasps either one
of tab portions 36 and pulls to simultaneously tear along
both of lines of weakness 22A, 22B. This operation removes
5 a portion 16D which the addressee discards, while flap
portions 16A and 16B (Figure 6B) remain as aforesaid.
Figure 2 depicts the front face 12 of envelope 10
and shows regions A ' and B ' which are respectively used by
the original mailer and by the addressee to affix appropri-
ate postage. Figure 2 also shows the provision of an
address aperture 38 in front face 12. A transparent,
water-soluble membrane 40 such as poly-vinyl-alcohol
material is fixed to an inner portion of front face 12
15 beneath aperture 38 to create a transparent "window"
through which an address imprinted on mailing material
inserted into envelope 10 is visible. The advantage of
using a water-soluble material such as poly-vinyl-alcohol
is that envelope 10 then becomes fully recyclable. Prior
20 art "window" envelopes have employed other types of film
materials which cannot conveniently be recycled, thus
preventing recycling of such prior art envelopes.
Figures 7A and 7B depict the affixation, to the
25 envelope's rear face 14, of removable label 42. Label 42
is of a size and is located in a position on rear face 14
corresponding to that at which mail handling apparatus may
apply postal bar code indicia 44. Conventionally, bar code
indicia 44 iS applied during the initial processing of
30 envelope 10 before it is delivered to the addressee. Bar
code indicia 44 iS machine-readable and defines the ad-
dressee's address. To prevent disruption of the mail
handling process, bar code indicia 44 iS preferably removed
from envelope 10 before it is reused by the addressee.
35 This is accomplished by the addressee peeling label 42 off
rear face 14 and discarding the label before reusing the
envelope. In some cases label 42 may be applied to the
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envelope's front face 12; or, labels may be applied to both
the front and rear faces, depending upon the bar coding
- methods adopted by the postal authorities in the particular
jurisdiction.
In some cases it will be convenient to manufac-
ture envelopes without pre-applying any adhesive thereto,
as depicted in Figure 8. Such envelopes may then be used
with automatic mailing machinery having a built-in adhesive
applicator. Such machinery-could, for example, be config-
ured to apply a dry, pressure-sensitive adhesive 46 covered
by a removable strip 48 to the envelope's rear face 14;
and, to also apply a wet adhesive to the upper portion 16A
of flap 16. The machinery then folds flap 16 over onto
rear face 14 such that the wet adhesive seals the envelope.
The addressee opens the envelope by tearing along line of
weakness 22, leaving flap portion 16A adhered to rear face
14, freeing flap portion 16B, and exposing cover strip 48.
The cover strip is then peeled away to expose pressure-
sensitive adhesive 46, which reseals the envelope when flapportion 16B is folded over against adhesive 46.
As depicted in Figure 9, flap 16 need not be
joined to front face 12 along one of its long sides, but
may instead be joined along one of the shorter side edges
to provide an end-opening envelope.
As depicted in Figure 10, parties using large
quantities of envelopes may pre-print their return address
on the envelope's front face 12 and use automatic
mailing machinery to apply a removable label 52 atop return
address 50. The addressee's address is printed on label
52, either before or after label 52 is applied atop return
address 50. The addressee removes and discards label 52 to
expose return address 50, and then reuses the envelope to
return material (such as a payment) to the original sender.
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g
If adhesive is pre-applied to the envelope, the
adhesive need not be confined to flap 16, but may instead
- be confined to rear face 14, or may alternatively be par-
tially on flap 16 and partially on rear face 14. For
example, Figure 11 shows adhesive regions 20A, 20B applied
to rear face 14, with no adhesive applied to flap 16. The
lower adhesive region 20B is initially used to seal flap 16
to rear face 14. The addressee opens the envelope by
tearing along line of weakness 22, leaving flap portion 16A
adhered to rear face 14 atop adhesive region 20B. This
frees flap portion 16B and exposes upper adhesive region
20A which can then be used to seal flap portion 16B to rear
face 14 for reuse of the envelope. If desired, a non-
adhesive gap 24 may separate adhesive regions 20A, 20B to
prevent migration of adhesive wetting agent from region 20B
into region 20A in order to prevent inadvertent affixation
of both of flap portions 16A, 16B to rear face 14 when the
envelope is first used. Figure 12 shows adhesive region
20B applied to flap portion 16A for initial closure or the
envelope in its first use, and shows adhesive region 20A
applied to rear face 14 for registry with flap portion 16B
in reclosing the envelope for reuse. Given the foregoing
description, different combinations of placement of the
adhesive regions will be apparent to those skilled in the
art.
As depicted in Figure 13, a second, removable
flap 54 may be joined to the upper edge of rear face 14.
Flap 54 is initially inserted into the envelope behind a
first enclosure 58 such as a utility bill bearing an
outgoing address 49 visible through window 38. The ad-
dressee opens the envelope by tearing along line of weak-
ness 22 as previously described and withdraws enclosure 58.
The addressee may also extract flap 54 from the envelope,
as seen in Figure 14. If desired, the addressee may remove
flap 54 by tearing along optional line of weakness 56.
Alternatively, the addressee may re-insert a portion 58A
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(Figure 17) of first enclosure 58 (such as a payment stub)
and a second enclosure 60 (such as a payment) into the
envelope and then re-insert flap 54 so that it lies in
front of portion 58A and second enclosure 60. This ensures
that return address 50 pre-printed within the exposed
window area 38A of flap 54 registers with window 38, with
the return address 50 clearly visible through window 38.
As will be apparent to those skilled in the art
in the light of the foregoing disclosure, many alterations
and modifications are possible in the practice of this
invention without departing from the spirit or scope
thereof. For example, in any embodiment of the invention,
flap 16 could be joined to the envelope's rear face,
instead of being joined to its front face. In such case
the envelope is closed by folding flap 16 over and sealing
it to the front face. Postage, address information, etc.
could be applied to flap 16, or to portions thereof, if
desired. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be
construed in accordance with the substance defined by the
following claims.
